Psyllium Husks: Ugly Name, Pretty Sweet Benefits

Awhile back, I noticed that a lot of vegan and vegetarian recipes we were looking into requires psyllium husks. Of course, we didn’t need them right away so I didn’t think much of them and didn’t wonder much, either, but when I happened upon them at Wegman’s, I picked up a jar of ground psyllium husk and figured, well, when we need them, we’ll have them.

There they sat in my cabinet. Probably about a month went by. Then, I decided to start doing that thing I do where I obsessively look stuff up until I learn all I need to learn.

And here’s what I learned about psyllium husks.

They’re VERY fibrous. Insoluble fiber, so, drink your water everyone. The little grains are naturally gel-coated and can thicken things up quite a bit — I’ve been using them in smoothies and in my lone milkshake this week, and it really adds a pleasing silkiness/thickness to things. I read that psyllium can expand up to TWENY TIMES it’s original size — so eat only a little and eat with care, and take plenty of water since it’s absorbent. Too much psyllium and you’ll get the opposite effect from it’s fiber, by the way, because of it’s absorbency and it’s tendency to swell up. It’s great for scrubbing out your intestines and can also improve heart health by binding to non-heart-friendly-things and getting them the heck out of you before you absorb them. It’s also a natural laxative (fiber, duh) which is great for folks who are wary of unnatural supplements or supplements that change the way the body processes things. All psyllium does is expand, bulk up, and scrub out your intestines — no manipulation a of the body there, really.

So lately I’ve been adding it to my morning smoothie and it really gives it the consistency of a chocolate shake! I recommend it to anyone looking to bulk up their fiber or thicken their liquids. I read somewhere that one woman puts it in orange juice? Madness.